Alchemist

Years Active: 1993-presentLabel: Soul AssassinsBest Known Song: “Hold You Down”

“Though perhaps best known for his work behind the boards, ALC has been holding mic cords almost as long as his umbilical. As Beverly Hills teens, he and Hawaii 5-0’s Scott Caan were The Whooliganz, signing to Soul Assassins and causing all sorts of mayhem in skate parks. Years later, after an extended break of…like you don’t know, Alchemist returned to rapping, most recently collaborating with West Coast producer Oh No under the name Gangrene. Still: once a Whooligan, always a Whooligan.” ~Complex Media on Alchemist

Biography

Daniel Alan Maman (born October 25, 1977), professionally known as The Alchemist (or simply Alchemist), is an American record producer, disc jockey (DJ) and rapper from Beverly Hills, California.He began his music career in 1991 in the hip hop duo The Whooliganz under the moniker Mudfoot, along with now-actor Scott Caan (whose moniker was “Mad Skillz”). After rising to prominence in the late 1990s, as a close associate of Dilated Peoples and Mobb Deep, he went on to produce for many of hip hop’s leading artists in the 2000s, and has been hailed as one of the genre’s leading producers. He is currently working as a DJ with Action Bronson. He produces for many artists, most of his recent production is for a close group of frequent collaborative rappers. He focuses on producing entire albums for rappers and Instrumental projects of his own.

Together with his long time collaborator Oh No (that together they form the groupGangrene), Woody Jackson and Tangerine Dream, he composed the official score to the highly acclaimed game GTA V.

As a teenager, Maman began to identify strongly with the rebellious lyrics and urban sounds of hip-hop, and he began writing his own lyrics. He joined up with other like-minded artists who wrote lyrics and rebelled against their suburban surroundings. These includedShifty Shellshock of Crazy Town, Evidence and Scott Caan, son of James Caan. In 1991, a 14-year-old Maman and Scott Caan decided to become a duo named The Whooliganz.While rhyming at a party in L.A., they attracted the attention of B-Real ofCypress Hill. He invited the teens to join his crew, The Soul Assassins, which also included the groups House of Pain andFunkdoobiest.In 1993, the Whooliganz released their first single, “Put Your Handz Up.” The song received little radio airplay and their record label, Tommy Boy Records, decided to shelve their album.Rejected, Scott focused his creative energy on acting while Al became interested in process of making hip-hop beats.

DJ Muggs took Al under his wing and taught him how to use a sampler and mixing board.After helping to produce a few tracks for Cypress Hill, Al became the main producer for his childhood friend, Evidence and his group Dilated Peoples.

When Dilated Peoples debuted in 1998, they helped promote Maman as a key part of their sound. Alchemist also produced several tracks on the debut album Focused Daily by Defari, another Dilated and Alkaholik affiliate. In 1999, Muggs introduced Al to his good friends, the popular hip-hop group Mobb Deep. Al produced two songs for their Murda Muzik album.Impressed by his production skills and street smarts, Mobb Deep took him under their wing, using his beats on all their subsequent albums. As Alchemist’s profile increased, he went on to produce for many of hip hop’s most successful and prominent artists, such as Nas, Fat Joe, Jadakiss,Ghostface Killah and Snoop Dogg.He has also remixed songs for bands and artists in other genres such as Linkin Park andMorcheeba.Al stayed loyal to his old friends, continuing to produce for Dilated, Cypress Hill and Crazy Town. He also enjoys producing for lesser-known underground rappers, often giving them some of his best beats.

In 2004, six years after his rapping career folded, The Alchemist put out his debut album, 1st Infantry. The album yielded the single “Hold You Down” (featuring Prodigy, Illa Ghee and Nina Sky), which hit number ninety-five on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2005.

Eminem’s Official DJ

Alchemist is Eminem’s official DJ, since DJ Green Lantern departed from Shady Records in 2005 because of a dispute related to the feud of 50 Cent and Jadakiss. In 2006, Eminem released a collaboration album with Shady Records called Eminem Presents: The Re-Up. Since the Alchemist is his official DJ, he produced some of tracks on the mixtape, as well as compiling the album in a mixtape fashion. On March 6, 2011, he signed with Shady Records to become a producer on the label and worked with Shady artists Bad Meets Evil and Slaughterhouse. On December 18, 2013, he was named the runner-up for producer of the year by HipHopDX.